Donnie Yen movie Enter The Fat Dragon was originally targeted for a Feb 14 rollout in Chinese cinemas.

But the movie - which made $864,622 at the Singapore box office during a four-day Chinese New Year run- got an online streaming release on Feb 1 instead, on the Tencent Video and iQiyi platforms, in view of the Wuhan-virus outbreak in China.

Cinemas there have closed to support efforts to contain the spread of the deadly health hazard.

Directed by Wong Jing, Enter The Fat Dragon features Yen as an unlikely crime-buster since the character he portrays is overweight.

Wong hopes the decision to go for an online release will provide a lift to viewers amid the health crisis.

"We are in an unusual time. We want to provide some relief and reduce the stress to those who are at home."

Pundits expect the Chinese box-office to suffer more than US$1 billion (S$1.36 billion) in lost income during the crucial Chinese New Year screening window.

Shuttered cinemas have also led to a delay in the release dates of films such as The Rescue, starring Eddie Peng, and thriller Vanguard, starring Jackie Chan.

But another highly-touted movie, Lost In Russia, starring Xu Zheng, has also taken the online-streaming route.